Battle for the Planet of the Apes
Primary Cast: * Roddy McDowall as Caesar * Claude Akins as General Aldo * Natalie Trundy as Lisa * Severn Darden as Governor Kolp * Lew Ayres as Mandemus * Paul Williams as Virgil * Austin Stoker as MacDonald * Noah Keen as Abe the Teacher * Richard Eastham as Mutant Captain * France Nuyen as Alma * Paul Stevens as Mendez * Heather Lowe as Doctor * Bobby Porter as Cornelius * Michael Stearns as Jake * Cal Wilson as Soldier * Pat Cardi as Young Chimp * John Landis as Jake's friend * Andy Knight as Mutant on Motorcycle * John Huston as The Lawgiver * Colleen Camp as Human * Paula Crist as girl in corral Synopsis Economic students should study 'Battle for The Planet of the Apes' for a lessen in the law of diminishing returns. This fourth sequel to the Planet of the Apes is a lesson in cashing in, low rent sets, poor acting, nonsensical plot and ignorance of science. This film is as cheap as Superman IV: The Quest for Peace was. After conquering the oppressive humans in Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, some 30 years before, Caeser tries to keep the peace amongst the humans and apes, albiet with apes in charge. Gorilla General Aldo views things differently, and tries to cause an ape civil war (of, like, 200 hundred monkeys). In the meantime, other human survivors learn of the ape city, and decide they want to take back civilization for themselves. This sets up the most ludicrous battle scene possibly ever filmed in the entire history of bad films. The army from the city rolls up in their 3 motor bikes, a jeep with a canon and a school bus and burns a few monkey tree huts. Sensing victory they interrogate Ceaser who calls the foxing Apes to arms and they actually win the Battle for the Planet! Cue an orangutan giving a history lesson to both ape and human children some 600 years in the future - Gasp! Ceaser changed the future! Earth did not explode! Chimps and Men can live in harmony! While the previous four movies had some pretty dodgy paradigms, 'Battle for the Planet' seems to ignore the cannon and comes up with some pretty odd situations. You have to suspend your belief for a bit to accept that in 30 years all Apes and Chimps can talk and can rationalise about space time continuums. You have to accept that a nuclear bomb can destroy a city but that everything below the surface can survive intact and that the electricity still works. You have to accept Caeser can set up an Ape City a day's walk from the city and that the bomb only destroyed the city and nothing else. You have to believe that in 30 years the gorillas have formed an army ...of 30 gorillas. It also sounds like they cut out a scene which would have given the movie some real relevance to the Ape series, in particular Beneath the Planet of the Apes. The cut scene was from the end of the film which shows the beginnings of the House of Mendez cult. The humans in the city are about to fire off the doomsday bomb but decide not to, as it would destroy the Earth. Instead they form a religion around the bomb. Overall, after the brilliance of the first 3 movies, the good effort of the third, 'Battle for the Planet of the Apes' is an epic let down. Do yourself a favour and watch the original Planet of the Apes. Cast And Crew Supporting Cast (uncredited): * Paul Stader ... Stunt Coordinator * Roydon Clark ... Stunts * Erik Cord ... Stunts * Paula Crist ... Stunts * Nick Dimitri ... Stunts * Dick Durock ... Stunts * Whitey Hughes ... Stunts * Hubie Kerns ... Stunts * Hubie Kerns Jr. ... Stunts * Regis Parton ... Stunts * Victor Paul ... Stunts * Allen Pinson ... Stunts * Thomas Rosales Jr ... Stunts * Wally Rose ... Stunts * Jesse Wayne ... Stunts Locations: Filming Locations: Items: Production Crew * Producer ... Arthur P. Jacobs * Associate Producer ... Frank Capra Jr * Unit Production Manager ... Michael S. Glick * Script ... Paul Dehn, John William Corrington & Joyce Hooper Corrington * Director ... J. Lee Thompson * Assistant Director ... Ric Rondell, Barry Stern * Director of Photography ... Richard H. Kline * Editor ... John C. Horger, Alan L. Jaggs * Music ... Leonard Rosenman * Sound ... Herman Lewis, Don Bassman * Make Up ... Joe DiBella, Jack Barron, Werner Keppler * Hair ... Carol Pershing * Creative Makeup Design ... John Chambers * Special Mechanical Effects ... Gerald Endler * Special Photographic Effects ... L.B. Abbott * Art Directors ... Dale Hennesy * Set Decorators ... Robert De Vestel * Title Designer ... Don Record Notes Inconsistencies Behind the Scenes Trivia John Landis, the director of Animal Farm, The Blues Brothers, An American Werewolf in London, etc., plays a tiny role in this one. Quotes Related Articles * Battle for the Planet of the Apes (Novelization) * Battle for the Planet of the Apes (Power Records) * Battle for the Planet of the Apes (Marvel Comic Book) External References * Battle for the Planet of the Apes at Wikipedia * Battle for the Planet of the Apes at IMDB * Battle for the Planet of the Apes review References ---- ---- 05